Official Luthiers Forum!

I’m vacationing in Oregon and have been thinking about buying a bench top sander because of no tax on purchases (saves 9.75%). Currently I do all my sanding and shaping by hand or my ROS. My work area is small enough that I wish I had the room or Hesh’s former bathroom shop although I do have some storage space. I store my power tools on a shelf and then drag them over to my bench when I need them. My bench area is about 2-3 foot wide and my other work area is the top of my go-bar deck. Hmm, most likelyTMI.

I have thought about purchasing the Rigid oscillating edge/belt/spindle sander after Hesh’s glowing review. The problem is that it is never on sale. My other choices for about the same money are two sanders from Harbor Freight. Yes, I know the quality of their tools but advice from the experienced is always helpful. One is a 4" x 36" Belt/6" Disc Sander (on sale $79.00) and an oscillating spindle sander for $129.00 (but I can wait for a sale if needed).

http://www.homedepot.com/Tools-Hardware-Power-Tools-Sanders-Polishers/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1xgfZaqht/R-100061671/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053
http://www.harborfreight.com/4-inch-x-36-inch-belt-6-inch-disc-sander-93981.html
http://www.harborfreight.com/oscillating-spindle-sander-38160.html



Any advice is appreciated.

Philip

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aka konacat

If you think my playing is bad you should hear me sing!
Practice breeds confidence and confidence breeds competence. Unfortunately, I'm stuck in practice.

If you are strapped for space, I'm not sure that a sander is the thing for you.
A few thoughts:
They produce a pile of dust.
What specific jobs did you have in mind for the sander? Can you do those jobs with cutting/scraping/rasping tools?
A 6" disc is pretty useless, IMO- too much difference in sanding rates from the edge in, and you will be changing the paper all the time. I used a homebuilt 10" for years and got a 12" eventually. Again, dusty, and take up room.
Do you own a drill press? Some of the sander jobs can be done with a drum in the drill press, and it's often easier to rig up a fence (for doing SS bridge ends, etc) on a drill press. And, a drill press is very useful (for drilling,obviously, but also with a Safe-T planer, etc)

BTW, I own a couple of 4x36 belt sanders, a homebuilt 3" drum sander, the 12" disc sander- they all live in the garage (because of the dust issue). One of the belt sanders is used with a jig for setting neck angles; otherwise they are mostly for rough work.

Cheers
John

I have one of the Ryobi sanders and I do like it a lot. If it tore up I would go get another one. However, if I didn't have a drill press, I would want one of them first. A drum sander on a drill press can do a lot although it isn't as fast of convenient as a dedicated oscillating sander. On the other hand there is no substitute for the drill press when it is time to drill accurate holes in bridges, headstocks, and so on.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

PHILIP

I have the RIDGID OSCILATING BELT/SPINDLE SANDER. I have been very happy with it. I also have a belt/disc sander that I use frequently. Use the disc sander more when doing jigs, and the Ridgid more when building guitar.

Bob

My Harbor Freight rule is not to buy anything there that has moving parts. Cheap tools cost too much.

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http://goatrockukulele.com